Thread collector for weft replenishing looms



March 8, 1949. R. G. TURNER THREAD COLLECTOR FOR WEFT REPLENISHING LOOMS vFiled Oct. 21, 1947 INVENTOR RICHARD a. TURNER ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 8, 1949 THREAD COLLECTOR FOR WEFT REPLENISHING LOOMS Richard G. Turner, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application October 21, 1947, Serial No. 781,215

.6 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in weft replenishing looms employing pneumatic thread holders and removers and it is the general object of the invention to provide a thread collector constructed in such manner as to facilitate manual removal of threads drawn thereinto by subatmospheric pressures.

Heretofore I have proposed pneumatic thread control devices for weft replenishing looms employing a thread holder for the weft ends of reserve bobbins awaiting transfer and also removing means for the short filling threads left by the outgoing bobbin incident to replenishing operations. Ordinarily there is a relatively large bundle of weft ends extending from the bobbins in the magazine, but the short threads manipulated by the thread remover are released one at a time. When a thread collector is made for both the weft ends and the filling threads there is likelihood that the latter, not being held by reserve bobbins, will move to positions which will clog the means through which subatmospheric pressures are created within the thread collector.

It is an important object of my present invention to provide a thread collector having a porous tube or the like in the lower end thereof through which a partial vacuum can be created within the collector and introduce the weft threads from the reserve bobbins in the top of the collector so that they are drawn down toward said tube, together with means for introducing said short filling threads from the thread remover into the collector at a point above the bottoms of'the weft ends attached to the reserve bobbins. In such a construction it is found that the weft ends form a wad or the like over the tube serving as a screen to allow air to pass therethrough but entangle the short filling threads coming from the remover. The tube is therefore kept substantially clear and is more efficient in. its operation.

In a form of thread collector recently proposed by me a door affords access to the interior of a relatively large cylinder on which is mounted the fitting on which the door is pivoted. It is a more specific object of the present invention to connect the aforesaid thread remover to a port located in the fitting below the door, and mount the fitting so that said port is preferably above the level of the previously mentioned porous tube.

It is a more specific object of the present invention to make the aforesaid porous tube of a rigid inner member and a flexible outer member formed of Wire screen or cloth. The inner memher is provided with a plurality of perforations 2 and also has provision at the top and bottom thereof for holding the flexible cylindrical member in position. As thus made the porous tube is a unit which can be suitably mounted in the bottom of the thread collector.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the upper forward part of a weft replenishing loom having my invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the cylindrical thread collector shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a detailed plan view looking in the direction of arrow 4, Fig. 1, showing more particularly the filling thread remover of the lay and its relation to the shuttle box, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical section of the porous tube shown in the lower part of Fig. 3.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, the loom frame In supports a reserve bobbin magazine M having in the present instance four stacks of reserve bobbins designated at B. Weft ends W extend from the bobbins to pneumatic thread holder H and are drawn into the latter by subatmospheric pressures created by a pump 11. The latter is mounted on the loom frame and has a piston 12 the rod [3 of which is connected to the upper end of a lever l4 pivoted as at I5 to a stationary stud or the like. An operating rod l6 extends forwardly from lever l4 and is attached as at H to thelay L which reciprocates backwardly and forwardly by reason of the crank connector l8 and crank shaft [9.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 4, the lay is provided with a shuttle'box 20 to receive the shuttle S from which a filling thread F extends to the adjacent selvage. Secured to the front part of the lay is a pneumatic thread remover R having an intake mouth 2| capable of receiving the filling thread F after the latter has been cut I from the selvage subsequent to a weft replenishing operation. During a period of loom operation a number of these filling threads F will be released one at a time.

A thread collector C is mounted on a stationary pipe or support 25 separate from the loom and preferably includes a transparent cylinder 26 on the upper end of which the holder H is mounted. The holder has a thread compartment 21 and a cover 28 hinged as at 29 so that it can be swung upwardly to permit the weft ends to move under the cover and into the compartment 21. The floor of the holder has a perforation or hole 3| therein through which the weft ends W extend downwardly into the interior of the cylinder 26.

The collector is provided with a bottom plate mounted on pipe 25 and supporting a hollow door D- mounted on a casting or the like secured to the cylinder 26. The fitting has a. passageway 46 communicating by means of a hole 41 in cylinder 26 with the interior of the collector. The door D is hinged as at 48 to the casting 45 and may be swung upwardly to allow the weaver manually toremove any threads which may have accumulated within the collector.

The matter thus far described has already been proposed by me and may operate in the usual manner. As the piston l2 moves rearwardly it createssubatmospheric pressures within the hose 3! and collector C the effect of which is to draw the weft ends W through the holder H and down into the interior of the cylinder 26 by way of the hole 3!. The thread remover R also acts pneumatically to remove the filling threads F by means to be described. It is to be understood that a large number of weft ends W wil ordinarily hang down from the holder H into the collector C, but the filling ends F are released one at a time by well-known cutting and clamping mechanism which of itself forms no part of my present invention, and is not shown.

In carrying my invention into effect I provide means whereby the short filling threads F may be directed into the collector C but effectively prevented from entering the lower part of it around the porous tube 38 in positions where they would be inaccessible for removal. The remover R is connected by a hose 50 to a hollow fitting 5| secured to the floor 52 of the casting 45. In this way the remover R is in pneumatic communication with the passageway 46 behind the door D and also with the interior of the cylinder 26. When a filling thread is released it will be drawn pneumatically into the remover R and along the interior of the hose 50, through the fitting 5| and passageway and thence into the cylthe casting u I do not wish thus to be limited in I the practice of my invention. The casting 45 provides a convenient mounting for the fitting 5i, but it is obvious that the advantages of the invention would be achieved if the hose 50 had an inlet into the cylinder 28 at any point above the wad 55 of weft ends. Under various operating conditions the size of the wad 55 may vary, but it will almost always be of sufllcient size to screen most if not all of the filling threads F. The top of the tube 38 is so located that the wad will be supported in a position somewhere near or below thepassageway 46.

Another feature of my invention relates to the details of construction of the porous tube shown particularly in Fig. 5. inner preferably though not necessarily metallic rigid tube having perforations 6| which are flared outwardly as at 62. A flexible cylinder 63 of metallic screen cloth is wrapped around cylinder 60 'and has a mesh sufficiently open to offer no substantial impedance of movement of air therethrough but fine enough to prevent I eter than that of the cylinder 60 so that the cyder 26 I preferably locate the cap 40 of the porous tube 38 low enough to be below the path traversed by filling threads F as they enter the collector. Ordinarily the weft ends W will be arranged more or less as shown in Fig. 3 with a comparatively large wad 55 resting on the cap 40 in such position as toserve as a screen to catch the filling threads F and prevent them from moving down along the porous tube. Wad 55 will be sufficiently porous to permit air to pass through it so that subatmospheric pressures can be created thereabove in the cylinder 26 and passageway 46.

While I have shown the hose 50 connected to lindrical screen 63 can be located between the cap and base and be held in position. The tube 38 thus is constructed as a unit which can be connected to the base 35 by means of the hollow screw 66 tapped into the base 35.

From the foregoing itwill be seen that the porous tube 38 mounts a wad of weft threads within the collector C in such position as to become an effective screen to prevent the short filling threads from moving too far down in the collector for convenient removal. This result is ac com-plished by having the top of the porous tube not substantially higher than the port of entry of the filling threads into cylinder 26. It will also be seen that the porous tube is made as a unit comprising an inner substantially rigid tube provided with a cap 40 and a base 65 between which extends a sleeve of mesh material such as wire screening. Although the hose 5!] is connected as shown more particularly in Fig. 3 to the casting 45, yet it will be sufiicient for certain purposes of the invention if the short filling threads F are introduced into the upper part of the cylv inder 26 by having the tube 50 appropriately attached to the cylinder.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art Without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In pneumatic thread control means for a weft replenishing loom having a pneumatic thread holder for a group of weft ends extending from reserve bobbins and having alsoa pneumatic thread remover for separate filling threads, a hollow thread collector below and pneumatically connected to the thread holder and into which the weft ends extend from the thread holder,'a porous tube in the bottom of the collector through which subatmospheric pressures are created within the collector, said tube supporting the weft ends on the upper part at a point above said upper part of the porous tube.

2. In pneumatic thread control means for a This tube com-prises an weft replenishing 1001' having a pneumatic thread holder for a group of weft ends extending from reserve bobbins and having also a pneumatic thread remover for separate filling threads, a hollow thread collector pneumatically connected to the thread holder and into the upper end of which the weft ends extend, a member in the lower end of the collector through which subatmospherlc pressures are created in the collector and on the top of which the weft ends are supported, and means pneumatically connecting the thread remover with the interior of the collector at a point above the top of said member.

3. In a thread control means for a weft replenishing loom, a hollow member, a thread holder pneumatically connected to the interior thereof and from which weft ends depend by gravity into the member, means in the bottom of the hollow member through which subatmospheric pressures are created within the member, the top of the means being located to support the bottoms of the weft ends, and means pneumatically connected to the interior of the hollow member above the top of said means for the pneumatic introduction of filling threads into said hollow member.

4. In a thread control means for a weft replenishing loom, a hollow member, a fitting thereon having a passageway and a door normally closing the latter but operable to afford access to the interior of the member for the removal of threads, a thread holder from which weft ends depend into the hollow member, porous means in the bottom of the hollow member through which subatmospherlc pressures are created within the hollow member, the top of the porous means being not substantially higher than said passageway and supporting said weft ends, and means by which filling threads can be pneumatically introduced through said fitting and into said passageway.

5. In a thread collector for a weft replenishing loom, a vertical cylindrical hollow member, a fitting thereon having a passageway therethrough communicating with the interior of said hollow member, the fitting having a fioor under the passageway and a door normally closing the passageway but operable to permit removal of thread from the interior of the hollow member, a porous tube secured in the bottom of the hollow member through which subatmospherlc pressures may be created within the hollow member and extending upwardly to a level not substantially higher than said floor, and hollow means passing through said floor and communicating with said passageway for the pneumatic introduction of filling threads into said passageway and hollow member.

6. In a thread collector for a weft replenishing loom having a pneumatic thread holder from which weft ends depend, a hollow member pneumatically connected with the thread holder and into which the weft ends extend, a rigid tube secured in the bottom of the hollow member having perforations therethrough through which subatmospherlc pressures may be created in said hollow member, said tube having a rigid upper end to support the lower ends of said weft ends, and a shell of wire screen cloth around said tube extending over said perforations to prevent the No references cited. 

